Google spends $6M in record lobbying quarter

Google spent nearly $6 million lobbying federal officials from April through June — a new quarterly record for the internet search giant as it faces antitrust scrutiny abroad and concerns about privacy practices in the U.S.

The $5.9 million Google spent in the last three months is $2 million more than it spent in the first quarter of 2017. During the same period in 2016, Google spent $4.2 million on lobbying.

Apple, Uber and Amazon also set new three-month lobbying records, but none came close to Google’s massive second quarter.

The latest figures bring Google’s total lobbying expenditures for 2017 to $9.4 million.

Google had spent $8 million at this point in 2016, and $15.4 million by that year’s end.

Google’s intensified efforts come as its search practices have been the subject of scrutiny overseas. Last month, the European Union slapped the company with a record $2.7 billion fine for favoring its own comparison shopping tool in its search results. And European officials are reportedly preparing another record fine in a related investigation.

Google also lobbied Congress and regulators on privacy issues as lawmakers and regulators have battled over cracking down on what companies can do with internet users’ data.

The company’s executives have long had close ties to Democrats. But with Republicans now in control of Congress and the White House, the company is trying to boost its influence with the GOP.